Understanding the /etc/quotas file

Fields of the /etc/quotas file

Quota Target field

The quota target specifies the user, group, or qtree to which you apply the quota. If the quota is a user or group quota, the same quota target can be in multiple /etc/quotas entries. If the quota is a tree quota, the quota target can be specified only once.

For a user quota

Data ONTAP applies a user quota to the user whose ID is specified in any format described in How Data ONTAP identifies users.

For a group quota

Data ONTAP applies a group quota to a GID, which you specify in the Quota Target field in any of these formats:

The group name, for example, publications
The GID, for example, 30
A file or subdirectory whose GID matches the group, for example, /vol/vol1/archive
Note
Specifying a file or directory name only enables Data ONTAP to obtain the GID. Data ONTAP does not apply quotas to that file or directory, or the volume in which the file or directory resides.

For a tree quota

The quota target is the complete path name to an existing qtree (for example, /vol/vol1/home).

For default quotas

Use an asterisk (*) in the Quota Target field to specify a default quota. The quota is applied to the following users, groups, or qtrees:

New users or groups that are created after the default entry takes effect. For example, if the maximum disk space for a default user quota is 500 MB, any new user can use up to 500 MB of disk space.
Users or groups that are not explicitly mentioned in the /etc/quotas file. For example, if the maximum disk space for a default user quota is 500 MB, users for whom you have not specified a user quota in the /etc/quotas file can use up to 500 MB of disk space.

Type field

The Type field specifies the quota type, which can be

User or group quotas, which specify the amount of disk space and number of files that particular users and groups can own.
Tree quotas, which specify the amount of disk space and number of files that particular qtrees can contain.

For a user or group quota

The following table describes the possible values you can specify in the Type field, depending on the volume or qtree to which the user or group quota is applied.

Quota type	Value in the Type field	Sample entry in the Type field
User quota in a volume	user@/vol/volume	user@/vol/vol1
User quota in a qtree	user@/vol/volume/qtree	user@/vol/vol0/home
Group quota in a volume	group@/vol/volume	group@/vol/vol1
Group quota in a qtree	group@/vol/volume/qtree	group@/vol/vol0/home

For a tree quota

The following table describes the possible values you can specify in the Type field, depending on whether the entry is an explicit tree quota or a default tree quota.

Entry	Value in the Type field
Explicit tree quota	`tree`
Default tree quota	tree@/vol/volume Example tree@/vol/vol0

Entry

Value in the Type field

Explicit tree quota

tree

Default tree quota

tree@/vol/volume

Example

tree@/vol/vol0

Disk field

The Disk field specifies the maximum amount of disk space that the quota target can use. The value in this field represents a hard limit that cannot be exceeded. The following list describes the rules for specifying a value in this field:

K is equivalent to 1,024 bytes, M means 220 bytes, and G means 230 bytes. If you omit the K, M, or G, the default is K.
Note
The disk field is not case sensitive. Therefore, you can use K, k, M, m, G, or g.
The maximum values you can enter in the Disk field are
- 4,294,967,295k
- 4,194,303m
- 4,095g
  Note
  If you omit the k, m, or g, Data ONTAP assumes the default value of k. For example, you can enter the maximum Disk field value as 4,294,967,295k or 4,294,967,295.
The value cannot be specified in decimal notation.
If you want to track the disk usage but do not want to impose a hard limit on disk usage, type a dash (-).
Do not leave the Disk field blank. The value that follows the Type field is always assigned to the Disk field; thus, for example, Data ONTAP regards the following entries as equivalent:

	#Quota Target	type	disk	files
	/export	tree		75K
	/export	tree	75K

Files field

The Files field specifies the maximum number of files that the quota target can use. The value in this field represents a hard limit that cannot be exceeded. The following list describes the rules for specifying a value in this field:

K is equivalent to 1,024, M means 220, and G means 230. You can omit the K, M, or G. For example, if you type 100, it means the maximum number of files is 100.
Note
The files field is not case sensitive. Therefore, you can use K, k, M, m, G, or g.
The maximum values you can enter in the Files field are
- 4,294,967,295
- 4,194,303k
- 4,095m
- 3g
The value cannot be specified in decimal notation.
If you want to track the number of files but do not want to impose a hard limit on the number of files that the quota target can use, type a dash (-). If the quota target is root, or if you specify 0 as the UID or GID, you must type a dash.
A blank in this field means there is no restriction on the number of files that the quota target can use. A blank is equivalent to a dash (-) in this field.
The Files field must be on the same line as the Disk field. Otherwise, the Files field is ignored.

Threshold field

The Threshold field specifies the disk space threshold. If a write causes the quota target to exceed the threshold, the write still succeeds but a warning message is logged to the filer console and an SNMP trap is generated. Use the Threshold field to specify disk space threshold limits for CIFS.

The following list describes the rules for specifying a value in this field:

The format of the Threshold field is the same as the format of the Disk field.
The maximum values you can enter in the Threshold field are
- 4,294,967,295k
- 4,194,303m
- 4,095g
  Note
  If you omit the k, m, or g, Data ONTAP assumes the default value of k. For example, you can enter the maximum Threshold field value as 4,294,967,295k or 4,294,967,295.
The value cannot be specified in decimal notation.
The Threshold field must be on the same line as the Disk field. Otherwise, the Threshold field is ignored.
If you do not want to specify a threshold limit on the amount of disk space the quota target can use, you must type a dash (-) in this field.
Do not leave the Threshold field blank. The value that follows the Files field is always assigned to the Threshold field; thus, for example, Data ONTAP regards the following entries as equivalent:

	#Quota Target	type	disk	files	thold	s-disk	s-files
	*	user@vol/vol1	3g	2g		2g	1g
	*	user@vol/vol1	3g	2g	2g	1g	-

Soft Disk field

The Soft Disk field specifies the amount of disk space that the quota target can use before a warning is issued. If the quota target exceeds the soft limit, a warning message is logged to the filer console and an SNMP trap is generated. When the soft disk limit returns to normal, another syslog message and an SNMP trap are generated.

The following list describes the rules for specifying a value in this field:

The format of the Soft Disk field is the same as the format of the Disk field.
The maximum value you can enter in the Soft Disk field is 4,294,967,295 K.
The value cannot be specified in decimal notation.
If you do not want to specify a soft limit on the amount of disk space that the quota target can use, type a dash (-) in this field or leave this field blank.
The Soft Disk field must be on the same line as the Disk field. Otherwise, the Soft Disk field is ignored.

Soft Files field

The Soft Files field specifies the number of files that the quota target can use before a warning is issued. If the quota target exceeds the soft limit, a warning message is logged to the filer console and an SNMP trap is generated. When the soft files limit returns to normal, another syslog message and an SNMP trap are generated.

The following list describes the rules for specifying a value in this field.

The format of the Soft Files field is the same as the format of the Files field.
The maximum value you can enter in the Soft Files field is 4,294,967,295.
The value cannot be specified in decimal notation.
If you do not want to specify a soft limit on the number of files that the quota target can use, type a dash (-) in this field or leave this field blank.
The Soft Files field must be on the same line as the Disk field. Otherwise, the Soft Files field is ignored.